Chapter Eighteen
Liam
I climb off the helicopter and head to the elevator. Stepping inside, I swipe my keycard and push the button, leaning back against the wall as it takes me down to the offices. My mind is filled with a thousand different thoughts and feelings – which, unfortunately, seems to be standard procedure these days.
It's not a feeling that I particularly care for. I'm a man used to crystal clarity and sound, logical thinking. Having this whirlwind in my head is unsettling – to say the least.
The elevator doors slide open and I step out into the ADE lobby. I greet our main receptionist and some of the other employees buzzing about. A few of them openly gawk but seem afraid to approach me. I'm sure with the cuts and bruises on my face, I'm quite a sight. Most of the people I see, however, cut a quick glance and then hurry away.
Judging by the reaction people are having to me, you'd think I looked like a combination of Quasimodo and Attila the Hun. I shrug and make my way down to my office. It is probably best to hide my temporary disfigurement behind closed doors.
“Good morning, Alice,” I say as I step into the lobby of my office and stop beside her desk. “How're the Words with Friends games going today?”
“You really need some new material, Mr. Anderson,” she says, looking up from her computer.
“You make it difficult for me,” I reply. “I know you're not looking at porn, which narrows down the material I can use significantly.”
“Well, work on it, would you, sir?” she says dryly. “I wasn't expecting you today.”
“I wasn't planning on being here either,” I say. “I just have a few things I need to handle in the city today.”
“Given what happened last time you were in the city, I'm surprised you'd want to set foot in Seattle again for a while.”
“Oh, you heard about that?”
“Everybody's heard about it, Mr. Anderson,” she says. “It's not often multi-billionaire CEO's are attacked in the street. Things like that tend to make the news.”
I shrug. “It wasn't that big of a deal, really.”
“Of course, you'd say that,” she replies.
I give her a grin. “Of course, I would.”
“Are you okay?” she asks. “I mean, really.”
I nod. “I'm fine, Alice,” I reply. “Nothing but a couple of bumps and scrapes. No big deal.”
She looks at me over her glasses, shooting a pointed look at the bruises I'm sporting with a clear look of skepticism on her face. Between her and Janice, it's almost like I have two mothers running around, ready to baby me at a moment's notice.
“Honestly, I'm fine,” I say. “The cut on my arm wasn't all that deep. Everything's going to heal just fine. Promise.”
She looks at me a moment longer and then a soft smile touches her lips. “Just, be careful out there, Mr. Anderson.”
Alice has never been one who's overly expressive with her emotions. To see her concern for me leaves me a little touched, honestly.
“Thank you, Alice,” I say. “I appreciate your concern. It means a lot.”
“Don't get all mushy and sentimental on me, Mr. Anderson,” she says. “I just don't want you to die because the job market is hell for a woman at my age.”
And she's back. There's the Alice I know and love. I laugh and shake my head as she gives me a small, warm smile. I turn and head toward my office.
“Oh, I'm expecting Adam shortly,” I say. “He's my only appointment today, so when he gets here, can you just send him in?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you, Alice.”
I step into my office and close the door. I drop my satchel on the couch and walk over to the windows, gazing out at the skyline of downtown Seattle beyond. The day is partly sunny, with fat, white fluffy clouds floating across the azure sky above. It's a gorgeous day, actually and there's part of me that wishes I was out there taking advantage of it. Hiking with Hemingway or just taking a stroll through the Pike Place Market. Anything would beat being cooped up on a day like this.
Honestly, what really sounds appealing to me is to be with Paige, maybe out on a picnic or something. It sounds more than appealing, actually. It's been a couple of days since our little tryst in her shop and I can't stop thinking about it. Or her. The idea of being out among the tall trees, making love to her under this gorgeous Washington sky – the mere thought of it is enough to get me hard.
It's a nice thought, but given that it's been a couple of days and I haven't heard a peep from her, makes me think that she's regretting it. Or perhaps, she's not as into me as I want to believe. I don't know what's going through her mind. All I know is that there's something about her I can't shake. Something that draws me to her and won't let me go.
It's a feeling I'm not used to. One that I've never experienced before – not even with Brittany. I was madly in love with Brittany, but I never felt the sheer compulsion to be with her that I do with Paige. It's maddening because it's so unexpected. That woman has a hold on me that honestly, freaks me out a little bit.
I need to put the situation and Paige out of my mind though. There is work to be done. I turn and walk back to my desk, dropping down into my seat and fire up my computer. I sort through the emails and see nothing of real import, so I move on to the next item on my agenda.
I type out a quick email to Ted, Brubaker, and the rest of the concerned parties, putting together a preliminary schedule for demolition and groundbreaking for the multi-use structure we're building. I actually have a few new ideas that popped into my head for the building and I want to meet with everybody before we do anything, just to feel them out and get their opinion.
With that done, I look over some paperwork and sign what is required to get the crew's clearance to work on a few projects down in Oregon and California. I look up at the sound of my office door opening and nod when I see Adam stepping through.
“How are you doing, Liam?” he asks as he closes the door behind him.
I stand up and walk around my desk, shaking his hand. “Doing well, thanks,” I say. “Please, come on in.”
I lead him over to the couches and he takes a seat, dropping his bag at his feet, as I walk over to the sideboard and pour us a couple of drinks. I walk back and hand him his glass before taking my seat on the sofa across from him. We silently toast one another and take a sip. He smiles and looks at the amber colored liquid admiringly.
“I'll make sure to get you a bottle or two for your birthday,” I say with a grin.
“I'd appreciate that a lot,” he says.
Holding my glass, I lean back on the sofa and cross my legs. As much as I like Adam, this isn't a social call. We have some business to discuss, and I thought it would be better-handled face-to-face rather than with a phone call.
“So, I talked to the PD,” he says. “A Detective Matthews was assigned to your case.”
I nod. “Yeah, I spoke to him briefly,” I say. “He took my statement and said he'd get back to me. That was days ago, and I haven't heard a peep.”
“Right,” Adam says. “I talked to my contact down in the crime lab and they ran the fingerprints on the knife, but it came up empty.”
“Damn.”
“That was my first reaction too,” he says. “But, I got a copy of the print card and took it to another friend of mine. I rolled the dice, hoping that maybe, just because your attacker wasn't in a criminal database, maybe he'd pop up in another one.”
“And?” I ask as Adam takes another sip of his drink. “Did he pop up somewhere else?”
Adam nods. “He did indeed,” he says. “US Army, actually. His name is – are you ready for this? – Travis Waltham.”
“You are fucking kidding me.”
Adam shakes his head. “Serious as a heart attack,” he says. “Your former wife's boyfriend is the one who attacked you in that alley.”
“Son of a bitch.”
“Yeah,” he says. “According to what I was able to find out, Waltham was dishonorably discharged after sixteen months of service for striking a superior officer. Apparently, he beat the guy so bad, he put him in the hospital. The guy almost died, from what I was told. Did six months in the brig and then they booted him out of the service.”
I take a long swallow of my drink and stand up. The anger within me is bubbling up once more and I start pacing my office, trying to diffuse some of it. It can't be a coincidence that on the night Brittany tracked me down at Grady's, that her boyfriend – one with a violent, criminal past – attacked me in that alley.
“Son of a bitch,” I repeat, my voice tight with anger. “They were right.”
“Who was right?”
I turn and look at Adam. “Paige and my brother, Brayden,” I say. “They both tried to tell me it wasn't a coincidence. They both thought Brittany had something to do with the attack.”
“Sounds like they were right,” he says. “Who's Paige? If you don't mind my asking.”
At the mention of her name, a flood of memory fills my mind, completely unbidden. The sound of her voice lingers in my mind. And all of the sudden, my senses are overwhelmed by the scent and taste of her. The feel of her skin against mine.
I clear my throat and try to push it all away. I can't afford to indulge in my memories right now. There's too much shit going on that needs my full and complete attention. Like the fact that my soon-to-be ex-wife is probably trying to kill me.
“She's a – friend,” I say.
Adam gives me a knowing look – the same sort of look Brayden had given me when he questioned me about Paige. Obviously, I'm not doing a good enough job of containing my thoughts or feelings about her. Not that I even know what they are at this point.
“Anyway,” I say, “I'm assuming what you found out isn't something we'll be able to use. Legally speaking.”
Adam sighs and leans back on the sofa. “Unfortunately, no,” he says. “I can't reveal the sources of my information because it's in something of a – gray area.”
“Understood,” I say. “We'll just have to go about this another way.”
“Any ideas about that?”
I shake my head and give him a wry chuckle. “Not at the moment,” I say. “But, I need to talk to my lawyer. I still have her listed as the beneficiary on everything. I never thought to take her off.”
“Well, that's something of an oversight,” Adam says and chuckles.
“Yeah, tell me about it,” I say. “One that I will be correcting as soon as I can contact my lawyer.”
Adam drains the last of his drink, so I walk back to the sideboard, grab the bottle, and give him a refill. He looks at the glass and grins.
“Given that it's barely noon, I probably shouldn't,” he says.
I shrug. “I'm the boss. I say it's fine,” I reply. “A little liquid grease for the gears. I find a little lubrication gets the mind working better.”
“Good enough for me.”
I pace my office again, sipping my drink as I play through everything in my mind.
“Even if you do contact your lawyer and get that ball rolling,” Adam says. “Given your assets and the complicated nature of everything, it's probably going to take a little time to get it all worked out. She's going to be your beneficiary for a little while yet.”
“Which means that until I have her removed –”
“She's probably going to keep trying.”
“Which leaves me in a jam,” I say. “I can't go to the cops with what I know. But, if I don't do something, she's going to keep coming at me.”
“Bingo,” he says. “Have you considered hiring personal security? I know a couple of guys who –”
I shake my head. “No, I'm not going to be doing that,” I say. “I don't want a bodyguard shadowing me everywhere I go.”
Adam nods. “I can understand that,” he says. “But, it could be the difference between staying alive and catching a knife in the back.”
I finish the last of my drink and look at the bottle on the sideboard. I know I probably shouldn’t but decide to have another drink anyway. I pour myself a glass and then raise the bottle to Adam, offering another refill. He shakes his head and raises his still half-filled drink.
“Need to pace myself,” he says with a wry chuckle.
I set the bottle back down and resume pacing my office. As I walk around, I feel like a caged animal. A caged animal with a big target on its back. And that irritates me. It irritates me to no end, actually. All because of Brittany. The more I think about it, the more I realize what she has done and is doing to my life, the angrier I get.
“I swear to God, when this is over and I'm in the clear,” I say through gritted teeth, “I'm going to rain hell down upon that woman. She is going to pay for this.”
“I wouldn't want to be in her shoes.”
I stop and turn to Adam. “No,” I say. “You wouldn't.”
He takes another sip of his drink and looks at me. “There's one thing we're not looking at here though. Something I think is actually kind of important.”
“What's that?”
“Well, we know the line from Waltham runs straight to Brittany,” he says. “Simple point A to point B. Or rather, point C to point B if you want to be more accurate.”
I cock my head and look at him. “I'm not following.”
“We know Brittany put Waltham on you in that alley. Simple deduction,” he says. “But the question I keep asking myself is this – who put Brittany on you? How did she know to track you down at Grady's? I mean, I'm assuming you didn't call her.”
I shake my head, as the full impact of what he's saying starts to sink in. “No, I didn't call her.”
“So, who did?” he asks. “Who told her you were there? If Waltham is point C and Brittany is point B, then who is the point A that completes that line?”
Draining the last of my drink, I walk over and pour myself another. It's a damn good question and one that never even occurred to me. Ordinarily, if my head wasn't so filled with fluff and chaos, it would have been one of the first questions I asked myself.
But, I've been so consumed with Paige lately that what should be obvious, fails to dawn on me. And it makes me want to kick my own ass.
“That's a damn good question, Adam,” I say. “A damn good question. And I want the answer to that.”
He drains the last of his drink and stands up. “Let me do a little more digging,” he says. “I'll find you the answers you want.”
“You do that, I'll bring in a case of that just for you,” I say, pointing to the scotch.
A broad smile crosses his face. “Done,” he says. “Don't think that gets you out of my normal fee though.”
I laugh as he turns and walks out of my office, leaving me alone with my thoughts.